Automatically operatively positioned and storable outrigger pad

ABSTRACT

An outrigger pad assembly for an extendible, vehicle stabilizing outrigger. The pad assembly is automatically carried from a position of storage within the perimeter of the vehicle to a ground-engaging position of use by extension of the outrigger. The pad assembly includes a platelike pad or foot swivelly affixed to the bottom of the outrigger leg and translatable with respect thereto tranversely of the truck between a storage position eccentric of the outrigger leg and a use position substantially central of the outrigger leg. The pad area is a large multiple of the cross-sectional area of the outrigger leg and both the outrigger leg and pad store within and substantially flush with the sides of the vehicle.

[ AUTOMATICALLY OPERATIVELY POSITIONED AND STORABLE OUTRIGGER PAD 751Inventors: David K. Riggs; Frank 0.9111111, both of Battle Creek, Mich.

[73] Assignee: American Fire Apparatus Co., Battle Creek, Mich.

[22] Filed: Mar. 9, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 233,209

[52] US. Cl 280/150-5, 212/145, 254/86 H [51] Int. Cl. B60s 9/02 [58]Field of Search 280/1505; 212/145;

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 11/1961 Noly .l...280/150.57/1967 Hand ..280/150.5

[ 1 Aug. 28, 1973 Attorney-Woodhams et al.

' 57 ABSTRACT An outrigger pad assembly for an extendible, vehiclestabilizing outrigger. The pad assembly is automatically carried from aposition of storage within the perimeter of the-vehicle to aground-engaging position of use by extension of the outrigger. The padassembly includes a platelike pad or foot swivelly affixed to the bottomof the outrigger leg and translatable with respect thereto tranverselyof the truck between a storage position eccentric of the outrigger legand a use position substantially central of the outrigger leg. The padarea is a large multiple of the cross-sectional area of the outriggerleg and boththe outrigger leg and pad store within I and substantiallyflush with the sides of the vehicle.

9 Claims, 13 Drawing Figures Patented Aug. 28, 1973 3,754,777

3 Sheets-Sheet :3

Patented Aug. 28, 1973 3,754,777

3 Sheets-Sheet 3 g I 7&

AUTOMATICALLY OPERATIVELY POSITIONED AND STORABLE OUTRIGGER PAD FIELD OFTHE INVENTION BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION It is well known to provideextensible outriggers on vehicles for preventing tipping of the vehiclewhen the vehicle is in a stationary position. Such extensible outriggersare frequently provided on trucks having upwardly extensible apparatus,such as power company aerial platforms and fire fighting equipmentincluding aerial ladders, aerial platforms and aerial water towers. Oneor more, usually a pair, of such outriggers are provided on each side ofthe vehicle, normally-at longitudinally spaced locations. When in usethe outriggers extend substantially beyond the side of the truckand-contact the ground adjacent the truck by means of a platelike pad orfoot whereby to effectively widen the area in which the truck issupported on the ground and thereby to stabilize same toprevent tippingof the truck by transverse loading of, for example, a verticallyextended aerial tower.

It has been common in the past to use a relatively small area outriggerpad or foot, that is, a pad of area not materially largerthan thecross-sectional area of the outrigger leg itself, for example, across-sectional area of less than a square foot, perhaps less than halfa square foot. Such small area pads are normally sufficient, however,only where the tipping moment imposed upon the truck is small andwherein the supporting surface for the truck is firm, e'.g.;-a pavedsurface.

However, the tipping moment may become dangerou'sly large when, forexample, theaerial'apparatus is relatively tall, wind loading thereon ismoderate to high due to substantial wind speeds and/or large elevatedsurface area, location of the upper end of the aerial apparatus is notsubstantially cente'red abovethe truck body or istransverselyoverhanging' same or a substantial weight is carried by theupper end of the aerial apparatus. Under any of these, or other,unfavorable cirspite the above advantages thereof because ofdifficulties encountered in storage of such large pads.

One approach has been to remove the pad from the outrigger leg aftereach use and preparatory to full retraction of the outrigger into itsstored position on the truck, followed by independent storage of theremoved pads in-a separate location on the truck. This is particularlydisadvantageous in the case of emergency vehicles where rapid set-upwith a minimum of operator effort is required, since set-up has requiredmanual removal of the pads from the storage place, partial extension ofthe outriggers, manual mounting of the pads on the outriggers and,finally, completion of the extension of the outriggers. This routine maytake several men 15 to 30 minutes to complete. Such delay is obviouslyundesirable in the case of tire fighting apparatus which must be putinto action as quickly as possible upon arrival at the scene of a fireto minimize loss of property and life. On the other hand, attempts topermanently attach such large area pads to outriggers in the past havebeen generally unsuccessful. Conventional outriggers particularly thoseof the type including a vertical leg normally store in their retractedposition flush or substantially flush with the sidewall of the truck soas to minimize the space within the truck consumed by storage of theoutrigger and thereby leaving a greater amount of useful space for otherequipment. Thus, retention of the pad on the outrigger during retractionhas generally meant location of the outrigger more deeply within thebody of the truck thus wasting additional space or has meant anunacceptable extension of a-portion of the pad outboard of the side ofthe truck which may violate laws limiting maximum vehicle width.

Thus, the objects of this invention include provision of:

1. A pad construction for an extensible vehicle outrigger whichautomatically extends to a position of use upon extension of theoutrigger from its stored position on the vehicle. 7

2. A pad construction, as aforesaid, incorporating a ground-engaging padof substantial area and, which area substantially exceeds across-sectional area of the outrigger leg to which it is attached.

3. A pad construction, as aforesaid, capable of firmly supporting thevehicle against tipping even when the vehicle is located on relativelysoft ground and/or subjected to relatively great tipping movements asthe result of, for example, extension of aerial apparatus locumsta'nces, such asa soft pad supporting'surface, such small area padsmay allow tipping of the truck and consequent damage to the,eq'uipment'or nearby persons and property, due to the high compressiveloadings between the pad and supporting ground occasioned by the smallpad area.

Use of such small area pads has,-however, simplified retractableoutrigger design in that no special measures are required for storage ofsuch small area pads since same are essentially a continuation of thecrosscated on the truck to a, relatively great height, carryingofrelatively heavy static loads at or near the top of suchaerialapparatus, location of the top of the aerial apparatustransversely beyond the sides of the truck, high wind loading on theaerial apparatus transversely of the truck and/or substantialtransverseloading on the aerial apparatus at or near the top thereofresulting from high velocity, high volume water jets directedtransversely of the vehicle.

4. A pad construction, as aforesaid, extendible. with its associatedoutrigger from a stored position within the truck body perimeter to aground-engaging position of use rapidly and without manual handlingthereof,

. eliminating risk of injury to personnel in manual instal- 5. A padconstruction, as aforesaid, which is readily returnable to a storedposition within the truck upon return to storage of the associatedoutrigger and without detachment from the outrigger. 6. An outriggerconstruction, as aforesaid, which is swivelly mounted to itscorresponding outrigger leg and adapted to assume an angled relationwith respect thereto upon contact with uneven or sloped ground tomaintain the truck level, the pad being resilientlybiased to asubstantially horizontal orientation.

7. A pad construction, as aforesaid, which is translatable with respectto its corresponding outrigger leg to a position eccentric of theoutrigger leg wherein-the pad and associated outrigger leg may be storedwithin the sidewall of the truck and substantially flush therewith,wherein storage space required within the truck body for the outriggeris minimized and wherein virtually no useful space within the truck bodyneed be occupied by the pad during storage.

8. An outrigger pad, as aforesaid, wherein the pad, upon extension ofthe outrigger automatically translates with respect to the outrigger legfrom its eccentric storage position with respect thereto to asubstantially centered use position with respect thereto. 9. A padconstruction, as aforesaid, in which the pad is fixedly maintainedwithin a storage position upon being placed therein but willautomatically disengage from said fixed position upon extension of theassociated outrigger.

10. A pad construction, as aforesaid, which is of simplifiedconstruction, adapted to manufacture in large or small quantities atrelatively low cost, which does not materially add to the cost of theoutrigger as compared with conventional pad constructions, which iscapable of rugged construction for long and trouble-free use overextended periods under adverse conditions of use and which moreover isreadily removed or replaced without the necessity of disassembly of theoutrigger associated therewith. f

Other objects and purposes of this invention will be apparent to personsacquainted with apparatus of this general type upon reading thefollowing specification and inspecting the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a fragmentary, pictorialview of a vehicle equipped with Outriggers embodying the presentinvention and disclosing one of a pair of such-Outriggers on one side ofsuch vehicle in its extended position of use and the other in its storedposition.

FIG. 2 is a enlarged, fragmentary, pictorial view of an outrigger padembodying in the invention in a position of use and disclosing a portionof the outrigger leg attached thereto.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary, partially broken view of the apparatus of FIG.1 taken from the rear of the vehicle and showing an outrigger and padincorporating the present invention in a position of use.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged, partially broken, sectional view substantiallytaken on the line IVIV of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view substantially taken on the line V--V of FIG.4.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged, sectional view substantially taken on the lineVIVI of FIG. 3 but showing the pad in a stored position with respect tothe vehicle.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged, fragmentary and partially broken viewsubstantially taken on the line VII-VII of FIG. 6. I

FIG. 8 is an enlarged, fragmentary, partially broken view similar toFIG. 6 but with the pad removed from storage.

FIGS. 9A through 9D disclose schematically several positions occupied bythe outrigger and pad between their use and stored positions andgenerally correspond in orientation to FIG. 3.

FIG. 10 discloses a modified centering spring unit.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The objects and purposes of the invention aremet by providing an outrigger pad assembly for an extendible, vehiclestabilizing outrigger. The pad assembly is automatically carried from aposition of storage within the perimeter of the vehicle to aground-engaging position of use by extension of the outrigger. The padassembly includes a platelike pad or foot swivelly affixed to the bottomof the outrigger leg and translatable with respect thereto transverselyof the truck between a storage position eccentric of the outrigger legin the use position substantially central of the outrigger leg. The padarea is a large multiple of the cross-sectional area of the outriggerleg and both the outrigger leg and pad store substantially flush withthe sides of the vehicle.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION FIG. 1 discloses a vehicle, more particularly atruck, 10 located on a supporting surface such as the ground 11 andhaving a body 12. Although the present invention may be used inconnection with vehicles of any desired type, the present invention wasdeveloped to meet a need in aerial apparatus trucks, such as power linemaintenance trucks and, more particularly, fire fighting trucks of thetype supporting a raisable, rotatable and extendible member 13 in theform for example of an aerial ladder, or a nozzle and/or platformsupporting boom.

Any desired number of outrigger and pad assemblies, two being here shownat 16 and 16A, are provided in longitudinally spaced relation on eachside of the truck 10. The outrigger and pad assemblies 16 and 16A arepreferably substantially identical and further description of onethereof, for example'the assembly 16, will apply to all. When stored,such Outriggers are located as indicated at 16A in a position within theconfines of the truck body with the exterior face 18of such assemblybeing substantially flush with the sidewall 19 of the truck body, toavoid violation of applicable vehicle width regulations and to avoidinterfering with movement of the truck from place to place. When in itsposition of use each such outrigger and pad assembly, as shown at 16,extends outwardly transversely from the sidewall 19 of the truck body toengage the ground-at a point which may be spaced several feet from thetruck to steady and prevent tipping of the truck, for example during useof the aerial apparatus 13.

In the particular embodiment shown, each outrigger, for example theoutrigger 16, comprises a substantially horizontal arm 21 telescopableinto and out of the body of the truck by any conventional means notshown and rigidly connected at its exterior end to an upstanding legreceiver 22. A leg 23 is telescoped for substantially vertical movementupwardly thereinto and downwardly out of the receiver 22. In theparticular embodiment shown, a face plate is provided on the exteriorface of the leg receiver 22 for furnishing the above-mentioned exteriorface 18. Suitable motor means, preferably bydraulic cylinders, areprovided within the truck body 12 and leg receiver 22 for longitudinallymoving the arm 21 and leg 23 with respect thereto to accomplishextension and storage of the outrigger 16. Such motor means may beactuated in any convenient way, for example through hydraulic lines notshown energizable from a centralized location via a set of controls 26,whereby all Outriggers of the truck may be simultaneously and rapidlyextended from storage to use positions by a single operator.

The outriggers to the extent above-described with reference to FIG. 1are of a conventional type. Although the pad construction hereinafterdescribed may be used with outriggers ofother types, for example,outriggers having angled legs either telescopingly or pivotally mountedwith respect to the truck, the outrigger 16 to the extentabove-described is of a particularly desirable type in that it requiresrelatively little storage volume within the truck leaving substantialspace for other purposes and further is constructable to withstandrelatively heavy tipping moments.

Turning now to the area more directly related to the present invention,the outrigger and pad assembly 16 carries at the lower end of leg 23 apad or foot unit disclosed in detail in FIGS. 2-9. Pad unit 30 (FIGS. 4and 5) comprises a large area, platelike pad, preferably ofsubstantially square shape having rounded corners 31.

An undercut slideway 33 extends from the outboard (rightward) edge ofthe plate 32 leftwardlyor inwardly past the center of the plate 32 andis substantially centered between the-forward and rearward edges of theplate. The slideway 33 is closed at its leftward (inner) end. In theparticular embodiment shown, the slideway 33 is formed by a pair oflongitudinal angle members 35 and 36 extending leftwardly from the edgeof the plate 32 and an end angle member 37 connecting the leftward endsof the angle members 35 and 36 to close the inner edge of the slideway.Each of the angle members 35 through 37 comprises an upstanding element38 fixed atop the plate 32 preferably by welding and a preferablyintegral, horizontal element 41 extending inboard from the upstandingelement 38. The end member 37 preferably is joined by welding to theadjacent ends of longitudinal members 35 and 36.

A slider 43, here a disk, preferably circular, is snugly but slidablyreceived within the slideway 33 beneath the horizontal elements orflanges 41 of the longitudinal angles 35 and 36 and, when centered onthe plate 32, beneath the corresponding horizontal element of the endangle member 37. The disk 43 is connected to the lower end of theoutrigger leg 23 by a swivel joint 46 which in the particular embodimentshown comprises upper and lower, interlinked and substantially C-shapedelements 47 and 48. The lower element 48 is preferably joined as bywelding to the central portion of the disk 43. The upper element 47 isfixed at its ends to the leg, preferably removably as by welding to asuitable adapter plate 49'in turn secured as by screws not shown to thebottom of the leg 23. Such swivel connection 46 allows the plate 32 torock in two vertical, mutually othogonal planes to accommodate slopingground. In use, the abutment between element 48 and leg 23, or element47 and disk 43, provides support against tipping for the truck.

A centering device 50 is provided for resiliently urging the plate 32into a substantially centered position beneath the leg 23 and comprisesan angle bracket 52 which is fixed to the outboard face of the leg 23adjacent the bottom end thereof and extends transversely beyond the leg.A further angle bracket 53 is fixed to the plate 32 intermediate theleftward plate edge and the slideway 33 and normally parallels the anglebracket 52. Coil tension springs 54 and 55 extend from the ends of thebracket 53 to corresponding ends of the bracket 52 and apply sufficientforce from the leg 23 to the plate 32 as to cause the plate 32 to slidefrom its eccentric position beneath the leg 23 shown in FIG. 6 to itscentered, use position of FIG. 4. Spring tension is preferably such asto tend to maintain the plate 32 substantially level when suspended fromthe leg 23 above the ground 11.

An automatically releasing latch mechanism 57 (FIGS. 2 and 4) isprovided on the pad unit 30 for purposes appearing hereinafter. Moreparticularly, the latch mechanism 57 comprises an upwardly extendingsupport 58 fixed as by welding to the plate 32 adjacent the lowerleftward corner thereof as seen in FIG. 4 and preferably having asubstantially vertical surface 59 facing the truck to which is secured alatch 61. The

latch 61 includes an elongate, longitudinally slidable latch element 62mounted for movement substantially in the length direction of the truckand having a beveled surface 63 facing the truck. The latch element 62is resiliently and longitudinally urged to extend outboard of the plate32 by any convenient spring means not shown, preferably located withinthe latch 61.

A bell crank 65 is pivotally mounted intermediate its ends at 66 on theplate 32 and extends substantially along the leftward edge of the plate32 away from the latch 61. One end of the bell crank 65 is pivotallyfixed at 67 to the inboard end of the latch element 62. The other, orinboard, end of the bell crank 65 is fixed to a flexible cable 71, theother end of which is secured to a bracket 72 fixed to the inboard faceof the leg 23 near the bottom end thereof. The length of the cable 72 issuch that same will be fully tensioned, and will through rotation of thebell crank 65 cause retraction of the latch element 62, when the leg 23and disk 43 move rightwardly with respect to the plate 32 beyond theeccentric position thereof shown in FIG. 6 whereat the leftward sides ofthe plate 32 and leg 23 are substantially and vertically aligned. I v

A storage carrier 76 (FIGS. 3, 7 and 8) is located beneath the storagecompartment 77 (FIG. 1) of the outrigger 16. In the particularembodiment shown the storage carrier 76 is located immediately beneaththe truck body 12. The storage carrier 76 receives the pad unit 30 forstorage. The storage carrier 76 comprises a generally rectangularframework having a pair of parallel, spaced and opposed angle members 78and 79 (FIG. 8) which extend transversely of the truck body. The anglemembers 78 and 79 are substantially of L-shaped cross section havingupstanding parallel sidewalls 81 and preferably coplanar andsubstantially horizontal base walls 82 extending inwardly from thesidewalls 81. The angle members 78 and 79 are preferably rigidlyinterconnected adjacent their ends by underlying cross members 84 and 85fixed as by welding thereto. The outboard ends of the angle members 78and 79 are flared as generally indicated at 87, by bending the outboardends of the base walls 82 downwardly and of the sidewalls 81 away fromeach other, to facilitate guidance of the plate 32 of the pad unit ontothe storage carrier 76.

Suitable brackets 91 are fixed as by welding to a suitable portion 92 ofthe truck, which may be part of the body 12 or supporting frameworktherefor. The brackets 91 include parts overlapping the inboard ends ofthe upstanding sidewalls 81 of angle members 78 and 79 and pivotallysupporting same as by interconnecting pins or bolts 94 to allow pivotalmovement of the outboard end of the storage carrier in a vertical plane.

Further brackets 96 (FIGS. 7 and 8) are fixed to the vehicle body orframe as by welding and depend therefrom above the ends of the outboardcross member 85. Each such bracket 96 includes a shelf 97 disposedintermediate the supporting portion of the truck body 12 and crossmember 85. A bolt 99 passes upwardly through aligned openings in eachend of the cross member 85 and the corresponding shelf 97 of thebrackets 96. Each volt 99 terminates above its shelf 97 in asubstantially coaxial surrounding compression spring 101 held in placethereon by a nut 102. Thus, the outboard end of the storage carrier 76is resiliently supported for limited pivotal movement with respect tothe truck to enable same to be pressed downwardly as the plate 32 ismoved into position thereon. The weight of the shelf 97 and the strengthof the springs 101 is such as to hold the storage carrier 76substantially horizontal when the pad unit 30 is stored thereon.

A catch element 104 extends upwardly from the upstanding sidewall of theangle member 79 and is fixed thereto by any convenient means such aswelding. The catch element 104 is positioned along the angle member 79so that the latch element 62 will be located closely inboard thereof andin overlapping relation therewith when the pad unit 30 is in its stor edposition shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 whereby to hold the plate 32, againstthe force of the springs 54 and 55, in its eccentric stored positionwith respect to the leg 23.

OPERATION Although the operation of the mechanism described above willbe understood from the foregoing description by skilled persons, asummary of the operation is now given for convenience.

The outriggers are normally stored within thebody of the truck when notin use. When so stored, the outboard face 18 of the outrigger issubstantially flush with the side of the truck as indicated at 16A inFIG. 1. Similarly, the pads 32 associated with the various outriggersare stored on their storage carriers 76 beneath the body of the truck asindicated in FIGS. 6 and 7 when the outriggers are so stored. Suchcorresponds .to the condition shown in FIG. 9A.

When the truck 10 arrives at a location where the outriggers are to beused, for example, to steady the truck against tipping when the aerialapparatus 13 is to be used, the controls 26 are actuated to individuallyactuate the outriggers, or preferably to actuate all such outriggers atonce, to extend same from their storage position. Thus, upon actuationof the controls 26, the outrigger 16 moves rightwardly out of itsstorage compartment 77 toward its position of FIG. 9B. As the outriggerreceiver 22 moves rightwardly a small increment, and while at least themajor portion of the disk 43 still lies in the slideway 33, the cable 71(FIG. 6) is tensioned thereby and pulls upon the bell crank 65, rotatingsame in a clockwise direction and causing same to retract the latchelement 62 so that the latter disengages the catch 104. Such frees theplate 32 for rightward movement along the angle members 78 and 79 of thestorage carrier 76. The tensioned springs 54 and 55 (FIGS. 4 and 6) thenpull the plate 32 rightwardly with respect to the leg 23. As a result,the plate 32 becomes centered beneath the leg 23 as seen in FIG. 4.Continued outboard movement of the leg 23 slides the plate 32 of thestorage carrier 76 as seen in FIG. 8. The apparatus thus assumes theposition shown in FIG. 9B.

Horizontal outward movement of the outrigger l6 ceases at the positionshown in FIG. 9C. At this point the leg 23 moves downwardly from thereceiver 22 until the plate 32 bears forcibly against the ground 11 andsupports leg 23 via one or both of the elements 47 and 48. Normally,when this condition is achieved suitable conventional locking means (notshown) associated with the outrigger lock same in position to preventunintended retraction of the leg 23 into the receiver 22. Although thepresent outrigger arrangement may be used to prevent tipping of thetruck while the wheels thereof still remain on the ground, the legs 23of the various outriggers may be extended to raise the truck wheels offthe ground as desired either to level the truck on sloped ground or toelevate the entire truck.

The springs 54 and 55 tend to maintain the plate 32 substantially levelafter it leaves the storage carrier 76. However, when the truck islocated on uneven or sloped ground, the plate 32 upon contacting theground will assume theslopc. (e.g. or at 32A in FIG. 5) thereof as theleg 23 continues to extend.

The aerial apparatus 13 may then be raised to a position of use.

It will be noted that, as the outrigger moves out of its storagecompartment 77 and full extension of arm 21 and the leg 23 is achieved,the pad unit 30 will, automatically and without specific attention byoperating personnel, have been removed from its stored location to itsground-engaging location of use. Further, shifting of the pad unit 30from its stored position to its position of use shown in FIG. 3, israpid, taking place during the normal period of extension of theoutrigger arm 21 and leg 23 and adding no further time incrementthereto. When it is desired to remove the truck from its position ofuse, the aerial apparatus 13 is brought into its lower or transportposition shown in FIG. 1 and thereafter, the outriggers 16 are normallyretracted. Such retraction is normally accomplished by a reverseactuation of the controls 26 which are sequenced manually orautomatically to cause, for each outrigger, the leg 23 to retractupwardly into the receiver 22 raising the plate 32 from the ground.Thereafter, the arm 21 retracts horizontally into the truck body, theplate 32, held substantially level by the springs 50, being at orslightly above the level of the horizontal base walls of the storagecarrier angles 78 and 79.

' In the particular embodiment shown, the plate 32 during retraction ofthe outrigger arm 21, tends to align itself for proper entry ontothecarrier 76. However, an operator will normally be located near theretracting outrigger 16, for purposes appearing hereinafter, and maydesirably elect to manually guide the plate 32 past the flared outboardportions 87 of the storage carrier and onto the base walls 82 thereof,as the arm 21 retracts, to achieve the transition from the position ofFIG. 98 to the position of FIG. 9A. With the outrigger arm 21 fullyretracted and the exterior face 18 of receiver 22 substantially flushwith the body of the truck in its stored position, the plate 32 willstill be centered beneath the leg 23 and thus the rightward portionthereof will overhang and extend beyond the side of the truck.

At this point, the operator standing nearby manually engages therightward edge of the plate and pushes same inboard of the truck causingthe plate 32 and latch element 62 to move inwardly along the storagecarrier 76. During such movement, the beveled surface 63 of the latchelement 62 contacts the catch 104 and is displaced inboard of the plate32 thereby, the tip of the latch element 62 moving along the inwardlyfacing surface of the catch 104 until the latch element 62 has passedthe catch 104. At such time the internal spring bias of the latch 61causes the latch element 62 to again extend, as shown in FIG. 6, so thatunintended outward movement of the plate 32 is prevented by interferencebetween the latch element 62 and catch 104. At such point, the plate 32has moved inboard of the truck with respect to the leg 23 and isnoweccentrically positioned with respect to the leg 23 as shown in FIG.6. The rightward edge of the plate 32 is, insuch position, substantiallyflush with the side of the truck and thus no longer extends therebeyond.In this manner, the pad unit 30 is returned to its fully storedposition. When the above retraction procedure has been carried out forall Outriggers, the truck may be driven away from its loca tion of use.I

Although the particular embodiment shown is arranged for utilizingmanual assistance in shifting of the plate 32 from its centered positionon the leg 23 shown in FIG. 4 to its eccentric stored position shown inFIG. 6, it is contemplated that suitable power means may be added tocooperate with the pad unit 30 to automatically achieve its fullystored, latched position.

MODIFICATION FIG. discloses a modified centering spring unit 201 for usein pairs in place of springs 54 and 55 of FIG. 4. The unit 201 comprisesa hollow cylindrical casing 202 with end walls 203 and 204. A'plunger206 has a head 207 slidable within the casing 202 and a rod 208which extends from the head slidably through a central opening 209 inend wall 204 and terminates in a suitable fastening device, here a hook211, probably engageable with an extension of the angle bracket 52 onleg 23. A further fastening device, here a hook 212 -pivotally engagesthe leftward end wall 203 of the casing to an extension of angle bracket53 on plate 32'. A coiled compression spring 214 lies radially betweenthe rod 208 and casing periphery and extends axially be tween head 207and wall 209.

A pair of such units on opposite sides of the leg 23 resiliently urgethe plate 32 into its substantially centered, use position beneath theleg 23, as in the case of springs 54 and 55 of FIG. 4. However, use of apair ofcess pressure relief, valve in the fluid circuitry of theoutrigger. In the event of such a failure to release, the outrigger canbe returned to its stored position for later repair. On the other hand,the outrigger can be used immediately, if necessary, simply by manuallyreleasing the latch 57.

Although a particular preferred embodiment of the invention has beendisclosed in detail for illustrative purposes, it will be recognizedthat variations or modifications of the disclosed apparatus, includingthe rearrangement of parts, lie within the scope of the presentinvention.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property orprivilege is claimed are defined as follows:

l. Extensible outrigger apparatus for prevention of tipping of avehicle, comprising in combination:

an outrigger leg extensible from a position of storage on the vehicle toa position of use spaced laterally outwardly and downwardly from saidposition of storage;

a ground-engageable pad;

coupling means for securing said pad to the lower end of said leg forallowing lateral translation of said pad with respect to said leg froman eccentric storage position to a substantially centered use po- Isition;

means for shifting said pad from said eccentric storage position to saidsubstantially centered use position with respect to said legautomatically upon extension of said outrigger from its storageposition.

, 2. The device of claim 1, in which said pad comprises a substantiallyplatelike member and said coupling means includes first and secondrelatively slidable members associated respectively with said leg andsaid pad.

3. The device of claim 2, wherein said first relatively slidable membercomprises a disk connected to said leg and said second relativelyslidable member comprises means defining an undercut groove on the uppersurface of the pad extending from one edge thereof to a position pastthe center thereof for receiving said disk therein for relative slidablemovement therealong, said coupling meansv further including a swivelconnection between said disk and the end portion of said leg.

4. The device of claim 1, in which said coupling means comprises aslideway on said pad and a slider connected to said leg and slidablealong said slideway, said means for shifting including a resilienttension element connected between said leg and a portion of said paddisplaced from an end of said slideway for urging said pad to asubstantially centered position beneath said leg.

5. The device of claim 1, including a storage carrier supported on thevehicle below the normal position of storage of said outrigger leg andadapted to receive said pad thereon for storage, interengageable latchmeans fixed with respect to said pad and storage carrier for sionelement responsive to displacement of said leg in a directionsubstantially outboard of said pad for releasing said latch means.

7. The device of claim 1, in which said outrigger leg is shiftable froma location of storage on the vehicle to a location of use spacedoutboard of said vehicle, said pad comprising a large area plate adaptedfor ground engagement on the underside thereof;

said coupling means comprising a spaced parallel pair of angle membersfixed to the upper side of said plate and having opposed flangesextending toward each other and spaced substantially parallel relationwith said plate, said angle members extending from the edge of saidplate furthest from the center of said vehicle inboard of said platepast the center thereof and being interconnected at their inboard endsby a further similar angle member for defining a slideway having aclosed inboard end, a disk receivable slidably in said slideway andoverlapped by said flanges for retention in such slideway, swivel meansallowing tipping of said plate at least in two mutually othogonalvertical planes interconnecting said disk and the bottom portion of saidleg for allowing said plate to be carv ried by said leg in spacedrelationship to the ground while allowing swivelling and sliding of saidplate with respect to said leg; 7

said means for shifting including spaced parallel brackets on said legand said plate extending substantially transversely to the lengthdimension of said slideway and located on opposite sides of said leg,said bracket on said plate being displaced beyond the closed end of saidslideway, a pair of tension springs interconnecting the opposed ends ofsaid leg and plate brackets for urging said plate to a substantiallycentered position beneath said leg whereat said disk is locatedsubstantially at the closed end of said slideway; and including acarrier on said vehicle below the normal stored position for said legand comprising a spaced parallel pair of members upon which said plateis slidable, said spaced parallel members extending transversely of saidvehicle in substantial alignment with the direction of extension of saidoutrigger, a catch on said carrier, a movable latch element and meanssupporting same on said plate for transverse movement with respectthereto in a direction substantially at right angles to said carriermembers, said latch element being adapted to lie inboard of said catchwhen said plate is located on said carrier members with the outboardedge of said plate substantially flush with said side of said vehiclewhereby said latch element and catch interact to prevent unintendedoutward movement of said plate off said carrier, a tension cable and abell crank, said bell crank being pivotally supported on said plate andengaged at one end thereof with said latch element, said tension cableconnecting the other end of said bell crank to said leg for retractionof said latch element out of obstructing relation with said catch upontensioning of said tension cable, said bell crank being displacedinboard of said closed end of said slideway whereby movement of said legaway from said vehicle past a preselected position of maximumeccentricity with respect to said plate tensions said cable and releasessaid latch element from said catch to allow said springs to move saidplate outboard along said carrier to a substantially centered positionbeneath said leg as said outrigger extends.

8. The device of claim 7, in which said disk is substantially circularand said swivel means comprises an opposed, interlinked pair ofsubstantially C-shaped lugs fixed respectively to said disk and to saidleg.

9. The device of claim 7, in which said carrier members are pivotedadjacent their inboard ends for rotation in substantially verticalplanes and including means resiliently connecting the outboard ends ofsaid members to said vehicle for resiliently resisting downward movementof said outboard ends, the outboard ends of said members being flared toassist entry of said plate thereon.

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1. Extensible outrigger apparatus for prevention of tipping of avehicle, comprising in combination: an outrigger leg extensible from aposition of storage on the vehicle to a position of use spaced laterallyoutwardly and downwardly from said position of storage; aground-engageable pad; coupling means for securing said pad to the lowerend of said leg for allowing lateral translation of said pad withrespect to said leg from an eccentric storage position to asubstantially centered use position; means for shifting said pad fromsaid eccentric storage position to said substantially centered useposition with respect to said leg automatically upon extension of saidoutrigger from its storage position.
 2. The device of claim 1, in whichsaid pad comprises a substantially platelike member and said couplingmeans includes first and second relatively slidable members associatedrespectively with said leg and said pad.
 3. The device of claim 2,wherein said first relatively slidable member comprises a disk connectedto said leg and said second relatively slidable member comprises meansdefining an undercut groove on the upper surface of the pad extendingfrom one edge thereof to a position past the center thereof forreceiving said disk therein for relative slidable movement therealong,said coupling means further including a swivel connection between saiddisk and the end portion of said leg.
 4. The device of claim 1, in whichsaid coupling means comprises a slideway on said pad and a sliderconnected to said leg and slidable along said slideway, said means forshifting including a resilient tension element connected between saidleg and a portion of said pad displaced from an end of said slideway forurging said pad to a substantially centered position beneath said leg.5. The device of claim 1, including a storage carrier supported on thevehicle below the normal position of storage of said outrigger leg andadapted to receive said pad thereon for storage, interengageable latchmeans fixed with respect to said pad and storage carrier for maintainingsaid pad in an eccentric location with respect to said leg duringstorage and latch releasing means automatically responsive to extensionof said outrigger for disengaging said latch means to allow said pad tobe removed from storage carrier upon extension of said outrigger.
 6. Thedevice of claim 5, in which said latch releasing means comprises amechanism interconnecting said latch means with said outrigger leg andincluding a tension element responsive to displacement of said leg in adirection substantially outboard of said pad for releasing said latchmeans.
 7. The device of claim 1, in which said outrigger leg isshiftable from a location of storage on the vehicle to a location of usespaced outboard of said vehicle, said pad comprising a large area plateadapted for ground engagement on the underside thereof; said couplingmeans comprising a spaced parallel pair of angle members fixed to theupper side of said plate and having opposed flanges extendIng towardeach other and spaced substantially parallel relation with said plate,said angle members extending from the edge of said plate furthest fromthe center of said vehicle inboard of said plate past the center thereofand being interconnected at their inboard ends by a further similarangle member for defining a slideway having a closed inboard end, a diskreceivable slidably in said slideway and overlapped by said flanges forretention in such slideway, swivel means allowing tipping of said plateat least in two mutually othogonal vertical planes interconnecting saiddisk and the bottom portion of said leg for allowing said plate to becarried by said leg in spaced relationship to the ground while allowingswivelling and sliding of said plate with respect to said leg; saidmeans for shifting including spaced parallel brackets on said leg andsaid plate extending substantially transversely to the length dimensionof said slideway and located on opposite sides of said leg, said bracketon said plate being displaced beyond the closed end of said slideway, apair of tension springs interconnecting the opposed ends of said leg andplate brackets for urging said plate to a substantially centeredposition beneath said leg whereat said disk is located substantially atthe closed end of said slideway; and including a carrier on said vehiclebelow the normal stored position for said leg and comprising a spacedparallel pair of members upon which said plate is slidable, said spacedparallel members extending transversely of said vehicle in substantialalignment with the direction of extension of said outrigger, a catch onsaid carrier, a movable latch element and means supporting same on saidplate for transverse movement with respect thereto in a directionsubstantially at right angles to said carrier members, said latchelement being adapted to lie inboard of said catch when said plate islocated on said carrier members with the outboard edge of said platesubstantially flush with said side of said vehicle whereby said latchelement and catch interact to prevent unintended outward movement ofsaid plate off said carrier, a tension cable and a bell crank, said bellcrank being pivotally supported on said plate and engaged at one endthereof with said latch element, said tension cable connecting the otherend of said bell crank to said leg for retraction of said latch elementout of obstructing relation with said catch upon tensioning of saidtension cable, said bell crank being displaced inboard of said closedend of said slideway whereby movement of said leg away from said vehiclepast a preselected position of maximum eccentricity with respect to saidplate tensions said cable and releases said latch element from saidcatch to allow said springs to move said plate outboard along saidcarrier to a substantially centered position beneath said leg as saidoutrigger extends.
 8. The device of claim 7, in which said disk issubstantially circular and said swivel means comprises an opposed,interlinked pair of substantially C-shaped lugs fixed respectively tosaid disk and to said leg.
 9. The device of claim 7, in which saidcarrier members are pivoted adjacent their inboard ends for rotation insubstantially vertical planes and including means resiliently connectingthe outboard ends of said members to said vehicle for resilientlyresisting downward movement of said outboard ends, the outboard ends ofsaid members being flared to assist entry of said plate thereon.